Whether I’m walking the dog or tuning into a podcast while cooking, open earbuds have become my everyday essential. They let in just enough of the world to stay present without sacrificing sound. So when EarFun dropped its new Clip Open Earbuds, I was curious—could they keep up with my routine and still sound good?

Key Features and Findings

Earbuds come in all shapes and sizes, although clip-on earbuds have been particularly popular lately. So, when EarFun sent me the Clip Open Earbuds, I wanted to see how they stack up against other open earbuds I’ve tried. Here’s what I found.

1. Getting Connected. An immediately telling feature for me is how well (and how quickly) I can connect a set of earbuds without having to download an app. With the EarFun Clip Open, the connection was easy. Bonus points because I was able to connect them to both my Mac computer and my Android phone without much difficulty (though you still have to disconnect from one to use the other). It’s also important to note that the EarFun Audio App has some good controls for hearing health, personalized audio, equalizer settings, and more, and you don’t have to register to use it.
2. Design. The hype around open-style earbuds is that they’re good for hearing the world around you, and I’ve found that to be very true. You can very clearly hear your audio—whether it’s music, calls, or audiobooks—without having to give up situational awareness. The downfall of this design is, of course, that you don’t have the option for noise canceling. What I found, though, is that the design of these earbuds makes it much easier to tune out the noise around you and focus on the audio. An added benefit is that these are much more comfortable to wear, as they don’t put pressure on the inside of your ear canal. The earbuds are also IP55 rated against water, which means you’ll be fine if you get sweaty while wearing these, but you probably won’t want to wear them in the shower or the pool. One important note here is that these are not adjustable. My ears are on the smaller size, and they fit me pretty snugly, so if you have larger ears, they might not fit properly.
3. Audio Quality. The EarFun Clip Open Earbuds are in the mid-price range, so as long as your expectation is mid-range audio, you’ll be very happy with these. They have Hi-Res sound, LDAC support, and with the app, you can customize the equalizer to your specific tastes. EarFun also says these earbuds have AI-powered noise reduction for when you’re on calls. I’ve used them on numerous calls in various environments and haven’t received any complaints about the amount of background noise; everyone says my voice is crisp and clear on their end.
4. Battery Life. If you wear earbuds all day long, you’ll want something that keeps up with you. EarFun’s Clip Open Earbuds promise 10 hours of playtime, and adding the charging case bumps that to about 40 hours. For my purposes, that’s been more than sufficient for managing phone calls and listening to audiobooks, music, and podcasts. If you do find yourself in need of a quick charge, EarFun says a 10-minute charge will get you about 2 hours of playtime, and in my experience, that’s been pretty accurate. You can also charge the case completely in just a couple of hours, so that’s pretty helpful.
5. Controls. The EarFun Clip Open Earbuds feature buttons on the back of the earpiece that allow you to control your audio, advance tracks, adjust volume, and answer calls. There’s also a voice assistant feature that you can activate with a button press, as well as app-only features that make the app worth downloading.

Important Specs to Know